Shootings by U.S. at Iraq Checkpoints Questioned
The automobile was traversing onto a route — the road to the airport — where soldiers have been killed in shootings and by roadside bombs. U.S. soldiers had established an impromptu evening checkpoint at the entrance to the road about 90 minutes earlier and had stopped other vehicles. They knew a high-level embassy official would be moving to the airport on that road, and their aim was to support this movement.
But no specific coordination occurred between those involved in Sgrena’s rescue and the military unit responsible for the checkpoint, according to the source, who said he cannot be named because the military’s investigation into the incident is continuing.
Soldiers at the checkpoint have told U.S. military officers that they flashed lights, used hand signals and fired warning shots in an effort to stop the car, which they believed was traveling at more than 50 mph, a typical speed for that road. But Sgrena, who had just been released by Iraqi captors, recalled later that the car was not traveling very fast and that soldiers started firing “right after lighting” a spotlight — a decision she said was not justified. Sgrena was wounded by shrapnel in the U.S. barrage.
The absence of advance communication between the Italians and the U.S. soldiers at the checkpoint appears to have put the occupants of the car in grave jeopardy, given what many U.S. officials describe as the military’s standard practice of firing at onrushing cars from their checkpoints in Iraq.
“In my view, the main contributing factor was a lack of prior coordination with the ground unit,” the source said. “If requested, we would have resourced and supported this mission very differently.”
The ground unit’s aim was to support the movement of a “high-level embassy official to the airport” yet they blame the shooting on lack of coordination?
Someone communicated this movement was coming or the unit wouldn’t have established their “impromptu” checkpoint. The United States didn’t think the release of this hostage merited more than a casual heads up to ensure their safe departure from the country?
Incredible. “Italy’s top intelligence officer in Iraq was killed” according to this report. I expect that’s a true statement. If I were trying to secure the release of a hostage that was stirring my country to demonstrations I wouldn’t send Barney Fife to get the job done. Has Silvio done something to upset the Bushies? Did Calipari communicate something to Silvio that upset him?
Hostage’s shooting ‘no accident’
Sgrena: The driver had spoken twice to the embassy and to Italy that we were on our way to the airport
We were less than a kilometre [from the airport]… when… I remember there was shooting
The driver began screaming that we were Italian
We weren’t going particularly fast given that type of situation
Talking heads (scroll down to Coulter’s clip) laughingly call for Eason Jordan to be shot for allegedly saying that the military targets journalists.
Had Jordan defended his remarks when the spotlight was on him instead of running like a coward would Nicola Calipari be alive today?
John Martinkus, the Australian journalist who was kidnapped by Iraqi insurgents in 2004, is alive and was interviewed by Green Left Weekly.
They were Iraqis, not foreigners. They said there were foreigners fighting with them in places such as Fallujah but that they were subordinate to Iraqis in their organisation. They vehemently denied that Zarqawi even existed, they said he was a fabrication to create a pretext for continued American operations in Fallujah.
Right-wing fascists are now furious the media is reporting about this incident at all. The little green racist wants to nuke Rome because protestors there are demanding answers.
via tex.
Yet, we don’t shoot journalists, do we.